Here is my Organic Lawn Fertilization Schedule. Just remember, that while a true organic schedule may make you feel good about the environment, it does take a little longer for the Organic Schedule (and the inevitable improvements to the quality of your soil) to start really showing.

The need for better organic products is obvious, however, as we all become more "environmentally aware."

The ultimate benefit of the organic schedule: fewer things to do. Many advocates of organic fertilizers claim that they only fertilizer two or three times a year.

Here's a brief list of organic fertilizers I think should be considered in the schedule, mainly because they are somewhat cost effective, don't smell (make me gag) bad, and are readily available. Availability is somewhat subjective, though, since they're carried mostly by independent retail garden centers that aren't part of "big box" stores. Lowe's, however, has been known to carry the Medina products.

As you may have noticed, if comparing schedules, one of the other benefits of using a 100 percent organic schedule is the reduced need for fungicides due to all the beneficial bacteria and protozoa that will naturally fight fungal diseases. But you will also discover agricultural corn meal (for fungal treatment) and corn gluten meal (for pre-emergent herbicide treatment) are very hard to find. In fact, very few garden centers carry more than one product for each of those treatments. And I'll bet dollars to donuts that none of the mass merchandisers carry either. Thus, there's not much need to list different brands like I did for the myriad of organic fertilizers.

The good news is that this is obviously a growing market, and I witnessed many manufacturers trying to get their agricultural corn meal and corn gluten meal products into Texas nurseries and garden centers at last year's Texas Nursery & Landscape Association Convention.

Randy Lemmon is the host of the GardenLine radio program on Newsradio 740 KTRH. Randy has been doing GardenLine in one capacity or another since December of 1995, for all three of the now Clear Channel AM stations - KTRH, KPRC & KBME. When Randy took over GardenLine, he replaced long-time Houston radio veteran and GardenLine originator, Bill Zak. For those who remember that far back, GardenLine was a weekly radio staple on KTRH from 10 a.m. to Noon Mondays through Fridays - along with a Saturday show as well. Now GardenLine is heard exclusively on Newsradio 740 KTRH on weekend mornings.